No. 8 Saints to Face No. 1 Trinity at CSA Team Nationals
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Tara FreemanIbrahim Khan and the Saints will travel to Yale this weekend for the CSA Championships.
Feb. 21: The St. Lawrence University men's squash team will compete for a national title for the first time in program history this weekend at the CSA National Team Championship in New Haven, CT. The Saints, who compiled an impressive 10-4 record this season en route to its highest national ranking ever at #8, will meet top-ranked powerhouse Trinity in the first round of the Potter Cup (A Division) on Friday, Feb. 22 at 11:30 am.
"This is a huge step for our program. We have been working really hard for a lot of years to get to this position," said St. Lawrence Head Coach Chris Abplanalp. "It's a tribute to all the players and coaches that have been a part of this program since it was started not that long ago. This team is a special group; they represent the hard work that has been put forth throughout the years. We are excited to go Yale this weekend and compete for a National Championship against the top programs in the country."
St. Lawrence enters the weekend with momentum, having won its last seven matches including convincing victories over then-ranked #9 Columbia (8-1), #10 Williams (9-0), #15 Navy (9-0) and #16 Middlebury (9-0). The Scarlet and Brown have played Trinity only twice in the program's 14-year history, having been swept both times.
Trinity enters the weekend having secured a perfect regular season with a 16-0 record. The Bantams have been undefeated in 14 of the last 15 regular seasons and are 278-2 over that span. No. 4-ranked Princeton was the last team to beat Trinity, having earned a huge 5-4 victory in the 2012 CSA Finals that ended the Bantams' 13-year run as national champion.
St. Lawrence has been propelled by newcomer Amr Khaled Khalifa, who is 7-0 at one in his first semester with the Saints. The Cairo, Egypt native has swept all of his opponents but one, the nation's second-ranked individual Ramit Tandon of Columbia, who he beat 3-2 on Jan. 19.
Sophomores Ibrahim Khan and Sebestian Riedelsheimer round out the top three in the Saints' lineup. Khan has won his last four matches at two, including two thrilling come-from-behind victories in front of a St. Lawrence home crowd. Riedelsheimer is 10-3 on the season, having won his last seven matches.
The middle of the Saints' lineup features sophomores Kyle Ogilvy, Anderson Good and junior Will Campo, who have gone a combined 26-10 this season. The team has also proven outstanding depth with the bottom three spots boasting a .929 win percentage. Sophomore Duncan Maxwell is 12-0 heading into the national championship, while sophomore Chris Fernandez is 12-1. Junior Vir Seth, who is 9-3 on the season, will also be a key player this upcoming weekend.